“Here you go, Johnny.”
April handed over three detailed and meticulously scripted maps to a
beaming Johnny. It had been a while since the maps had last been
updated, so it was a big relief to have them renewed.
Johnny clasped the newly made documents and splayed one of them out
across a pine wood table. They were at the bridge at the moment, so
the next course of flight was about to be planned out.
“Good work, April. Now that we have these maps out of the way we can
move on to more important things.”
Johnny looked around the room for a second. “Where are May and Dizzy?
They aren’t back yet?”
April shook her head. “Nope. You want me to go find them?”
“Nah,” Johnny said. “Just tell them what’s what later on. I’m not
gonna repeat myself. Okay, this is the plan. Remember the gold we
picked up? Well we’re going to cash it in.”
April took a glance at the map that Johnny had laid out. “Where?”
Johnny placed his finger on that country. “China.”
April looked confused. “Isn’t that where we were going to go all
along? Is that why you wanted to go before?”
“Yes. There is an old guy that lives in the town of Fuzhou. He is a
gold collector. He’ll pay a fortune for the stash we claimed on our
last heist. As soon as we make the exchange we’ll head out.”
“Who’s going to go?” April asked with a hidden inquisitiveness.
Johnny thought to himself for a second. “I guess you and May could use
a break. I’ll take Dizzy with me.”
That had April a little worried. “Are you sure that’s wise?”
“I understand you’re worried, April. But she needs to learn these
things. She’s a member of the Jellyfish Pirates now. It’s important
that Dizzy understands that. As long as she hides her tail and wings,
I don’t think we’ll get the same reception we got in Spain.”
Deep down, both April and Johnny hated the way that sounded. It made
Dizzy seem like some sort of leper. Having to cover herself and hide
her ‘shame’. Despite that though, it was necessary. If not to protect
Dizzy, then to avoid attention. That was the one thing the Jellyfish
Pirates didn’t need.
Johnny rolled up the map he had previously spread, and placed it in a
large cabinet used for the storage of other documents of that type.
“Well, hold down the fort, I’m going to get something to eat.” Johnny
said as he made his way to the door. But the chief advisor of the May
ship looked at him, surprised.
“Wait, don’t tell me your leaving me on flight duty?!”
Johnny chuckled. “Sorry, but I need something to snack on. You know
how much of a miracle worker June is in cafeteria, right? Well this
time I’m getting a slice of her cherry pie!”
April was still not satiated with that. “But I’m hungry too! And I’ve
been slaving away on those maps for hours with the other girls!”
As the door opened, Johnny waved her off. “Then send for May. She at
least can keep us aloft, even if she hates flying the ship. Seeya!”
And with that, Johnny was gone. April sighed at this situation.
Although Johnny was a very capable captain, he could be very laid back
when he needed to be. The most obvious time would be when he was
around a woman...or hungry.
April walked over to the rudder and mumbled under her breath. “Darn
it!”
**********
A few corridors shy of the bridge, Dizzy and her anchor-wielding
friend, May were quietly strolling through the steel refined
passageways of the May ship. While the two walked, May inspected Dizzy
from the corner of her dark marble eyes. Dizzy always appeared to be
troubled in someway, but she’d make an effort to put on a brave face.
This time was slightly different though. The expression on her face
was very withdrawn. A great deal more so than before. And her general
disposition was...tired. Like she had been coping with something. But
what?
{She did have a bad dream before, didn’t she?} May thought. {Is that
what’s bothering her? Or maybe one of the girls said something to
upset her. I wonder...}
And true to that impetuous nature of hers, May didn’t let her queries
go unanswered.
May tried her best to be mellow enough to deal with what might be
said. “Dizzy? Is something wrong?”
The beautiful Gear jerked her head and threw a sideways glance of
confusion at May. She was so wrapped up in her own...thoughts, that
she barely noticed May’s concern.
“Why do you ask?”
The two of them stopped walking. “You don’t look too good...”
Dizzy wanted to say something that even slightly resembled the truth,
but part of her didn’t want to hurt May’s feelings. Necro had a real
distrust for her. Undine (to a certain extent) was supportive of the
situation, and recognized the significance that May held in Dizzy’s
heart. But the conflict that was generating around the two of them the
real problem. It was near enough agony for Dizzy. And that same part
of Dizzy wanted to keep this problem to herself for that reason as
well.
Telling May could lead to complications.
It wasn’t great but Dizzy tried her hardest to smile. “I’m sorry...if
I worried you. I am fine. Really. Please do not concern yourself about
me.”
May looked slightly disturbed. “You shouldn’t say it like that, Dizzy.
You make it seem like worrying about you is a chore.”
Dizzy’s ruby eyes looked down again, as May stepped closer to her. “I
do not want you to be worried. I do not like it when people are
suffering because of me.”
Letting her feelings guide her for a very brief period, May smiled
lazily at Dizzy, letting her small hand come to rest on Dizzy’s soft
cheek. “Nobody is suffering, sweetie. You need to think less about
other people and start looking after yourself. But I guess that’s what
I like about you...you’re so selfless...”
Dizzy blushed a vibrant crimson. “May...”
May’s lips parted slowly to say something more, but she quickly
silenced herself when she heard a door slide open. The two girls
separated quickly, and out came a replete Johnny, drowned in his own
joy. You couldn’t beat June’s cooking. The captain of the May ship
walked up to the two girls.
The two girls both had questionable looks on their faces. “Hey, girls.
What’s up?”
May was reluctantly the first to speak. “Nothing...um, didn’t you want
to teach Dizzy how to pilot the ship?”
Johnny looked to Dizzy. “I did actually want to do that, Dizzy. But I
don’t think I’m up to that now. And April needs a break. I think May
will have to show you the method.”
May seemed surprised by that. “Huh? But I don’t even like flight duty.
Now that I think about it, why now? I thought Dizzy and I were
supposed to help out June.”
“I already told you why.” Johnny said. “Besides, I’m not asking you to
take over FD for now. Just show Dizzy how it’s done. Besides, June is
fine for the moment.”
Both Dizzy and May nodded in acceptance. “Okay.”
Johnny then made his way down the corridor, and so May and Dizzy made
their way over to the bridge. In relative silence.
**********
It was night. Deep in a small yet tranquil forest, Baiken, Millia and
Venom had come to set up a temporary campsite. Though it had been
awkward, especially for Baiken, Millia had agreed to hear out Venom
when he said that he had ulterior motives for attacking her. Though
the Japanese woman was strictly opposed to Millia’s decision, she too
gave Venom the benefit of the doubt. For now.
The three were sitting around the campfire that Venom had erected from
nearby firewood, and a biting silence was surrounding them. The only
sounds that could be heard were the gentle night songs of the crickets
and eerie hooting of the wise owls stalking along the branches of
towering oak trees.
Baiken (with her eye fixed on Venom) drew her sword, and pulled out a
rock from some undergrowth. With a mockingly transparent show of
intimidation, Baiken drew the stone over her blade slowly, sharpening
it. But Venom was not foolish enough to miss the subtext of the
situation. It was a subtle yet stern challenge, one that Venom would
not back down from.
Millia picked up on the slight friction between the two of them and
tried to avoid any conflict by opening up conversation.
“You said that you wanted our help.” Millia supplied. “What do you
want...or need?”
“And why do you assume we’ll help *you*?” Baiken hissed.
Venom ignored Baiken’s hostility, and directed his attentions to
Millia. “You and I have a common goal, do we not? You wish to find
Zato-ONE. So do I. I assumed it would be in our best interests to work
as a unit.”
Baiken tossed away the stone, and sheathed her now shining blade.
“You can’t be serious...you recognize the fact that you are an
assassin, yet you want to work side by side with an enemy of the
assassin organization that sent you?”
Venom tossed a stern gaze at Baiken. “I chose this path of my own
accord. This has nothing to do with the organization. If I wanted to
kill you I wouldn’t have attempted to do it in front of a crowd.”
“So you want to enlist Millia’s help by attacking her. Yes, that reeks
of logic.”
The slight anger in Venom was being aroused by Baiken’s words, but he
did his best to suppress it. “I felt that I should test her powers
before I made any claims. I still find it hard to believe that she
defeated Zato.”
Millia looked back at Venom. “So you want to work together to track
down Zato, is that it?”
The English assassin nodded slowly. “Correct.”
Baiken was not convinced however. “Give me one good reason as to why
we should even begin to trust you.”
“I can’t do that,” Venom started. “You have no real reason to trust me
and I know there is nothing that I can say to change your feelings on
this. All I ask for is for you to give me the benefit of the doubt. If
you wish to refuse then I won’t press you on the matter.”
Although Millia took Venom’s words in, Baiken openly rejected them.
The cerise haired samurai stood up quickly and walked away from the
two assassins. But not before looking over her shoulder once more.
“I do not trust shadow-crawling slime like you. If I were you, I’d
watch your step around me, boy. Try anything while I am gone and
you’ll be giving Kami-sama my regards.”
After handing Venom another icy glare, Baiken stalked off in to the
darkness of the forest. Venom’s fist shook angrily. He understood the
misgivings that Baiken held, but it still bothered him. And this
assassin didn’t like to be treated with such disdain.
Millia chuckled inwardly. These two were acting like children. “Try
not to let her scorn overwhelm you. Baiken finds it hard to trust
people.”
Venom snorted at that comment and stared in the direction that Baiken
left from. “She’s too arrogant. No one is invincible.”
A silence descended on the two again. It was very strange for the two
of them to be able to talk to each other like this. Millia herself had
hated the assassin organization for the majority of her life, and
Venom had more than one reason to dislike Millia. First off, she
betrayed Zato and the organization. Then that betrayal led to his
imprisonment in the prison of dimension. Then his defeat at the
International Fighting Tournament led to him being overrun by...
Both assassins felt a chill run down their spine while thinking of
that. They felt somehow guilty. Venom for allowing it to happen, and
Millia for letting Zato’s comeuppance rattle her so much. It was at
this point that the two remembered the hatred they should be carrying
for each other.
Venom was the first to break the silence. “Why did you betray him?”
“What?”
“I said why did you betray him. Zato really cared for you. You were
the one woman who he showed any real faith in.”
Millia ignored the voices in the back of her head that were feeding
her guilt. “I do not have to justify my actions to you. I did what I
had to. Zato’s fate is of no consequence to me.”
Even Venom could see through that lie. “Then why do you still search
for him? You indirectly authored my master’s imprisonment. You
defeated him. You allowed his possession. Your defeat of Zato put the
organization it disarray. And yet you *still* hope to find him? To
finish him off? What more can you hope to achieve? You’ve
single-handedly demolished Zato’s life.”
The visions that Millia had during her fight with Venom were running
around passionately in her mind. “Zato-ONE is a filthy demon. If his
life has been destroyed thanks to my actions then so be it. He was a
fool to let himself be consumed by such a power. And he was even more
of a fool to invoke such dangerous things.”
Venom closed his eyes. “You are speaking of him very harshly. Are you
really holding Zato to such disparagement because of those things? Or
is it that you hate him for giving you a sense of guilt about them?”
Millia jerked in surprise. Venom was right. Zato had made some
mistakes in his life, but that was not what bothered Millia. Millia
wanted to put away Zato for good so she could live her life in peace.
If Millia hated Zato for anything, it was because she felt blameworthy
for his consumption by the shadows. As much as she hated her recluse
life, Millia had come to terms with it. It was this bastard-borne
guilt that was tearing her up from the inside. And it was from that
agony, that Millia came to the conclusion tattooed across her soul.
Kill Zato.
Millia fell into an ostensible silence. Venom didn’t wait for her
react. “I won’t push you for a response. I think we both know the
answer to that question. But I at least still believe in him.”
Millia looked at Venom in slight confusion. “Why are you searching for
him alone? And why are you acting without orders?”
Venom parted his hair slightly and tugged one of his ashen white
tresses of hair behind his ear. “Since Zato’s imprisonment, things
have not been well in the organization. We have lacked suitable
leadership and the candidates for the title have done nothing but
squabble amongst themselves. Then we got word in the English Guild
that Zato had been freed by an unknown source. We all assumed that he
would return to his position as commander as soon as he won the
tournament, but no word came. Some began to talk of his betrayal in
the same fashion as you, but I couldn’t bring myself to believe it.
Then I learned from a few of our targets that you had beaten him and
that Zato had been...overtaken by the shadows we all feared and
respected. I heard about a possible sighting of Zato, and I left to
investigate. The lead I followed was correct, but I arrived too late
to find him. Then I had no idea what to do. Until some of my
associates found out your location. I had originally intended to kill
you, but when I found out that you were after him as well, I chose to
seek your help. The only reason I act without orders is because Zato
has been branded a traitor. If anyone in the organization found out
that I had been searching for him or that I asked for your help in
that search, the organization would declare my execution. That is why
I work in such tones of secrecy.”
“Why are you risking your life for him?” Millia asked. “You strike me
as one of the few principled members of the organization.”
Venom smiled briefly. “Zato is my master. He made me what I am today.
When others looked upon my skills with contempt, Zato showed loyalty
and respect to me. And even more than that...Zato is my friend. I will
not allow the organization to believe that Zato is a traitor. Simply
because he isn’t. I know now why he hasn’t returned, and I know that
he needs my help.”
Millia looked hard at Venom. “You do realize that I intend on killing
him, don’t you?”
“...We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” Venom stood up and
picked up the case holding his snooker cue. “Just remember that when
we find Zato...our alliance is terminated.”
Millia nodded, and Venom walked off into the dark woods surrounding
the pair of them. As Venom slipped out of sight and earshot, Baiken
walked back into the campsite and took a seat next to Millia.
“You were watching us?”
Baiken nodded in earnest. “Yes. But I do not like the smell of this.
Not one bit. How can he so easily go against this assassin guild when
you have been hunted down by them for so long?”
“I don’t think that he’s directly betrayed the organization. At least
not like I did. It isn’t anymore believable to me as it is to you, but
I will work with him for a while.”
Baiken looked shocked. “What? Millia, are you insane? How can you
trust this man?”
“I can’t. But he doesn’t come across as a liar either. There is a calm
passion within him. It’s something that most assassins lack and I
think he is sincere it what he says. We’ll just keep an eye on him for
a while.”
**********
“Finally!” April yelled. “You’re finally here!”
May and Dizzy casually walked into the bridge of the May ship, where a
tired April was waiting for the two of them. After breathing a
worn-out sigh of weariness, April dragged her feet towards the door.
May looked back at her. “You okay, April? You seem-“
April cut her off. “Don’t say it. I just need to lie down for a while.
And then get some lunch. I deserve a break, darn it.”
Tiredly strolling through the door, April waved goodbye to the two
girls. May smiled at her tired friend. “That April. She’s as miserable
as heck but she does work hard, doesn’t she? Ah well.”
May turned to Dizzy. “You wanna get started?”
Dizzy nodded and she and May walked over to the rudder of the ship.
Dizzy stood in front of the wooden wheel and clasped two of the
handles with both hands. She had seen Johnny doing this before, and it
looked simple enough.
May shook her head. “Nah. You’re holding the wrong bars. Hold it with
the back of your hands facing downwards, and pick two handlebars that
are parallel to each other.”
“Okay.” Dizzy adjusted her grip on the rudder, to fit the requirements
that May gave to her. With a shaky arm, Dizzy pulled off the right
grip, much to the pleasure of a certain brunette.
“That’s it!” Squealed May. “Now April told you about changing
directions and stuff, right?”
“Yes. A 180-degree turn to any adjacent side to make a half turn, a
360-degree to turn the ship fully turn around, and a 90-degree turn
for a quarter turn.”
May sweat dropped. Dizzy was a shy person but there was a bold, more
technical side to her. A side that she wasn’t showing too often.
“Well...guess that’s right. Oh, but you should tighten your grip a
little bit more. The strength of grip on the rudder also decides the
severity of the turn.”
May moved closely behind Dizzy and positioned her gloved hands over
Dizzy’s and placed a tight grip around the Gear’s grasp of the rudder.
Since Dizzy was a little bit taller than she was, May stood up on her
tiptoes to peer over Dizzy’s shoulder.
As May continued to instruct her, Dizzy zoned out her words. Though
she tried desperately to concentrate, Dizzy was distracted. May’s
breasts were poking into her back. Didn’t she even notice that?
Dizzy did her best to ignore her flaming blush and focus, but May
perceived that Dizzy was pre-occupied with something other than
piloting the ship.
May didn’t seem affected by how close they were. “Is this a little bit
complicated? Nah, don’t worry it all comes naturally when you practice
it enough. But think April or Johnny would have done a better job at
teaching you this. Truth be told, I’ve never liked flight duty. It’s
the only chore I can’t stand. But we all have to do it, I guess.”
Dizzy fumbled to say something. “Um...yes...I...”
Once again, May got that distant yet dreamy smile as she looked deeply
at Dizzy. “Dizzy...”
Dizzy noticed that look and used it as a scapegoat. “Why are you
looking at me like that?” She said timorously.
“Your eyes...” May started absent-mindedly. “They sparkle when you’re
all embarrassed like that.”
Dizzy blushed deepened. Out of the situation and out of the
complement. “...Uh...I...thank you...”
Suddenly, everything around the two fell out of focus, like metal
falling through air. The two became resolute on nothing more than each
other, and Dizzy felt a curious churning within herself. Like
butterflies were flocking inside her. That very feeling consumed so
much of her attention that she didn’t notice that her eyes were
closed. Or the fact that the gap between her lips and May’s was
shrinking. And then, as if it had been destined to happen, Dizzy’s
soft pink lips pressed loving against those of May’s.
May’s eyes opened widely in pure shock. {Oh my god! What is she doing?
Is she...kissing me?}
The grip that May had on Dizzy’s hand faded as her arms fell to her
sides. {I...don’t believe...she’s...}
Though she wasn’t aware of it, May’s eyes closed sharply, her lips
parting after doing so. Dizzy sighed breathlessly at such innocent
contact, and the beautiful Gear drowned in the sweet rapture of her
first kiss...
May felt her knees going weak. {Her...lips...so soft...Dizzy...}
And quickly as it came, their tender kiss ended as May regained her
senses and jerked back from Dizzy. Both girls panted desperately with
twin blushes of attraction and embarrassment. The time had passed
quickly but May had felt as though...
The pirate girl looked away sadly. {...I...I...can’t believe she did
that...}
A tear passed down May’s cheek as she slowly backed away from a
speechless Dizzy. She couldn’t even bring herself to look Dizzy in the
eye.
“I’m...sorry!” May made a bolt for the door. She didn’t care where she
was going, just...anywhere but there...Within seconds May was gone.
And Dizzy didn’t follow after her.
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